This book had some major creep factors. It was sort of Freddy Krueger meets Chuckie with a twist at the end. I was looking for something to make me jump and this did not disappoint. ( )

Rating: To Come

I am currently reading this book. I'm about 40% compete and I am totally digging this book! Such an amazingly written horror novel, I can't wait to dig deeper into the story!

Full review coming soon!

April 17, 2017 UPDATE!

Rating: 5 Stars

This book was AMAZING! I loved every part of this book. The "scary" parts were perfect just the right amount to make you shiver for the characters. I really enjoyed how each of their nightmares were their demise, either you survive your nightmare or die trying. Brilliantly written, I loved how the author wrote in 5 different povs. That must be really hard to do but she succeed flawlessly. Lastly, the ending was to die for, literally! It made you want more, and was the ultimate cliffhanger!

A must read for horror fans like me that don't like to read too much gore but still there is enough gore to be satisfyingly scary and thrilling! ( )

Welcome to Dark House
by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Laurie Faria Stolarz, author of the popular horror series, Blue Is For Nightmare Series, has begun a news series, Dark House. "Welcome to Dark House" is book 1 in this new series.

Hunger Game fans will turn to this new series with interest. I thought the book started a little slow but soon galloped along with the first person dialogue provided by nightmare riddled Ivy Jensen. I gave the book 4 stars as I felt that many questions left hanging in the book will covered in the next book in the series. Will the author reveal more about the other 6 visitors to Dark House from book 1 in book 2? Can't tell you more and spoil your read!

Written for the young adult audience, the book will satisfy blood thirsty young hormone driven adolescents.
( )

I'm somewhere in the middle with this book. Let's discuss why, shall we?

The Bad: The characters are difficult to follow for the first, oh, 75 pages or so. Every POV is in first person, and each chapter is from a different character's perspective. Certain details that would help in keeping track of who's who aren't revealed until after page ninety. The easiest folks to separate are Parker (because of his script-writing style) and Natalie (because she's one odd duck). Yet Parker's script sections are a bit annoying. I felt there was no reason for the book to suddenly become a teleplay. It added nothing to the narrative, and seemed to be a cop out when the author got tired of describing things within the narrative. I read books because I like books. Leave the script writing for the big screen and teledramas, please.

One final note concerning the Bad: Some of the pop-culture references seemed antiquated considering these character are all eighteen year olds. Julia Child and Pretty in Pink are mentioned, along with the movie adaptation of The Shawshank Redemption. It seemed all these teens were stuck in the eighties, or further back, yet they all had cell phones, so that places them in relatively modern times. I don't know, man... it took me out of the story here and there, because it felt like author intrusion. And I should know, because I'm guilty of it in my own writing.

The Biased: I hate purple prose that interrupts tense situations, and there's a scene toward the end, between Parker and Ivy, that made me laugh so hard I teared up. Here these two teenagers are, lives in danger, one bleeding profusely, and suddenly Ivy is gushing about how complete Parker makes her feel and how she wishes he wouldn't stop looking at her. I put this complaint in the Biased section because some of you might like this. I, however, found it sappy as hell and goofy as fuck. I really could have done without it, and I don't think it fit the book at all.

The Good: Well, just about everything else. Imagine The House on Haunted Hill as directed by Tim Burton (Scissorhands-era burton; not Planet-of-the-Apes Burton). There are numerous fun and creepy scenes herein, and I had a blast throughout 95% of this book. It's an easy read (probably took me all of 5 hours total to get through), and I can't say that I was ever even close to being bored. Once I got to know the characters, I grew attached to them. I felt fear when they were in danger, and sorrow when they died. They are a little cliched, but not in an insulting-stereotype kind of way. My favorite characters ended up being Garth Vader (yup, you read that right; that's his name) and Natalie. In my opinion, they were the stars of the show.

In summation: This is only the third YA novel I've read, and my first in the YA horror department, and, surprisingly enough, I didn't hate it. I had fun, which is all I really look for when reading. I think most of my friends would enjoy this one. I will definitely be looking for more from Laurie Faria Stolarz (Tom Cruise wept, that's a mouthful of a name) in the near future. ( )

I don't know what it was about this book but I absolutely loved everything about it. Seven horror movie fans win a contest to take a trip to meet their idol and film director Justin Blake. There are so many different types of characters in this book, and since this is dual-perspective, you are able to to see the story from every single one of the contestant's point of view. The setting is perfectly creepy for the story being told. This was a book that I couldn't put down from the very first page, the author's writing really drew me in and I loved being able to hear from all the characters in the story, even if they seemed minor. ( )